Blog

but it seems that farming, and interfacing with the wildness, is good for our psyches. Slow Down: How Our Fast-Paced World Is Making Us Sick By Linda Buzzell, AlterNet. Posted July 2, 2009. Not so very long ago, humans -- like the rest of the animals and plants on earth -- moved through our natural […]

Curt Ellis & Ian Cheney, the truck farm-driving, award-winning filmakers responsible  King Corn, have planned an amazing crash course in independent documentary for early September.  Applications are due this week!  Read on, or just download the flyer and application here: Wicked Delicate Film School. WICKED DELICATE FILM SCHOOL a crash course in independent documentary september […]

Greenhorn & artist Miranda Currie sent us some of her whimsical artwork recently, and we love it.  Here's a note from Miranda about her work and inspiration. I currently work as a farm apprentice and artist-in-residence at a small farm in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in Northern California. My step-sister, Willow Hein, began […]

courtesy of Cooking Up a Story [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qFCfyP2tXSM&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fcookingupastory.com%2Fa-conversation-with-claire-hope-cummings%2F&feature=player_embedded] In this 4-part series, journalist, environmentalist, and author of Uncertain Peril: Genetic Engineering and the Future of Seeds, Claire Hope Cummings speaks out on behalf of the natural world, and for a new approach to solving the environmental, social, and philosophical problems inherent in our present food system.

Teen greenhorns in Kentucky, recipients of Rural Youth Loans from the Farm Service Agency. Working hard for the moo-la By Katheran Wasson July 19, 2009 published in The State Journal Leaning against a green metal farm gate, Tyler Grimes, 16, and Evan Sandlin, 17, looked over the cattle-filled field that rolled in front of them. […]

we love it when zoe gets airtime. and particuarly since she lived on credit cards for the past year after being turned down for a Loan from the local farm credit. Maybe some of these capitalists will get together a fund for young farmer micro loans? Fortune Magazine: Look Who's Farming Now The rancher's daughter […]

Last weekend marked the 6th Annual Kickapoo Country Fair. The weekend was packed with a celebration of green-living and Kickapoo Culture, highlighted by the "Organic Heroes" Keynote Panel on Sunday. Congressman Ron Kind, Tim LaSalle of the Rodale Institute, Ronnie Cummins of the Organic Consumers Association, Ken Cook of the Environmental Working Group, Theresa Marquez […]

it's beer friday. and this is our choice:  New Belgium's Fat Tire. Or, in fact, any of their beers. [vodpod id=Groupvideo.3089419&w=425&h=350&fv=streamer%3Drtmp%3A%2F%2Fnewbelgium.streamguys.org%2Ffyfvids%26file%3Dtvspottinker60.flv%26autostart%3Dfalse%26image%3Dfiles%2Fvideoimage%2Ftinkerer_0.jpg%26width%3D270%26height%3D202] more about "Fat Tire | New Belgium", posted with vodpod

Our only comment: Boys! Get some Land! Drive Through: A Truck Farm Grows in Brooklyn by Curt Ellis When my buddy Ian suggested we turn his ’86 Dodge half-ton into a planter, I thought the pickup had finally blown its engine. When Ian said he intended to keep the old truck on the road in […]

we like this film. And particularly the vista/spoonbread fetishism. more at http://www.room609.com/films/promisedland/trailer.html [vodpod id=Groupvideo.3089284&w=425&h=350&fv=] more about "The Promised Land - A Swamp Pop Journey", posted with vodpod

Our friend Chandler Briggs, a greenhorn at Island Meadow Farm on Vashon Island, sent us this great article on some rad young farmers in Texas at Windy Hill Organics. Organic Veggies Grown in Area, Sold in Abilene By Celinda Emison (Contact) Saturday, June 27, 2009 COMANCHE, Tx — Ty Wolosin loves Mother Earth, which is […]

Almost all towns have a few extra acres of land around their transportation department, police department, water department headquarters. They currently just mow that land. Why not follow the model of the USDA's offices and plant gardens, or even better--provide grant money, a competitive design process, and some city support to young farmers who use […]

Click here to download the March 2008 Farm Country Magazine (a publication of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation) highlighting Mississippi's young farmers. Scroll past the Beef Council ads and the plug for NAIS and there's some interesting commentary. Any Missippi greenhorns out there care to comment? There are some questionable statements in the "President's Message", […]

beautiful and inspiring video of horse-powered farming at Beech Grove Farm. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8reHVRqXZ8&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.extension.org%2Fpages%2FVideo_Clip%3A_Ridge_Till_and_Cover_Crops_from_Vegetable_Farmers_and_their_Sustainable_Tillage_Pract&feature=player_embedded] "Eric and Anne Nordell have developed a farming system that integrates cover cropping, composting, crop rotation, and horse-drawn cultivation in an economically viable extensive organic vegetable farm. Anne and Eric have been growing organic vegetables, herbs, and flowers for over 20 years at […]

of King Corn fame. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzuFO6g_n6s]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2FX9rviEhw]

we're interested in the weaving together of these things.  Several past & ongoing exhibits explore them, including our own Land. Liberty. Sunshine. Stamina, which was up in April & May in San Francisco. this rad image is from Farmadelphia, a proposal for the transformation of Philadelphia by the architects at Front Studio. CURRENT Radical Nature […]

interesting commentary on one farm's struggles, celebrations and learnings with regards to land. Check out their blog: Red Planet Vegetables These first five years at Red Planet have been exciting for us. Sometimes a little too exciting. For one thing, we’ve had to change location three times! It’s hard to keep the details straight, but […]

The Common Ground Country Fair is still a ways off, especially for those of us taking it day by day in the fields, but it's worth marking your calendars for this one.  we promise.

these rules they have about riparian areas, they are rules designed by the folks who farm with lazers. Crops, ponds destroyed in quest for food safety Carolyn Lochhead, Chronicle Washington Bureau Monday, July 13, 2009 Dick Peixoto planted hedges of fennel and flowering cilantro around his organic vegetable fields in the Pajaro Valley near Watsonville […]

http://corporatewatch.visionon.tv/ [vodpod id=Groupvideo.2961844&w=425&h=350&fv=] more about "untitled", posted with vodpod

you probably know of This I Believe, a "public dialogue on belief".  Listen to this one, by Mary Seton Corboy of Greensgrow, a pioneer in urban gardening in Philadelphia. http://www.whyy.org/podcast/thisibelieve/tib20090213.mp3 and while we're talking about pennsylvania... if any of you out there in the blogosphere have contact with some folks at Landslide Farm in Pittsburgh--we're […]

we like this manifesto! m is for movement, and meaningful stuff that matters the most. The Generation M Manifesto Dear Old People Who Run the World, My generation would like to break up with you. Everyday, I see a widening gap in how you and we understand the world — and what we want from […]

Greenhorn Chandler Briggs of Island Meadow Farm, on Vashon Island in Puget Sound, passed on this little note about their first season, and some nice local press! It's a process & I'd say for our first year we're doing just fine. With the extra cabbage we made kimchi & sauerkraut, so we'll stock that in […]

hey, we're not saying it. It's CNN who has figured this out... Life on an Organic Farm by Jack Hamann Lynden, Washington (CNN) -- Jesse Williams' career as an organic farmer almost ended before it began. Rising with the sun, Jesse carefully collected his first harvest of organic lettuce and headed for the local farmer's […]

here is a re-post from the ethicurean...a bit dated, but important and serious stuff. We were wondering about this on the greenhorns radio show. Not milk: The ingredient behind the dairy crisis By Elanor @ 8:03 am on 10 March 2009. I have no idea what it would feel like to be a dairy farmer. […]

... in the archives of the New York Times, from 2002. I wonder if these fashionable landowners want to sponsor, or employ some young farmers? O Madonna Had a Farm by William Norwich the article begins with some solid lyrics from Cole Porter's "Farming", from 1943.  Here they are in full:

Do we approve of this trend in agri-burbia? Is working for a Home Owner's association better than working for the man? Do we think it offers hope to the young farmer movement? Please let us know your thoughts! Organic Farms as Subdivision Amenities By Alec Applebaum Published: June 30, 2009 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/01/business/energy-environment/01farm.html?_r=1&ref=business

If you're San Francisco or Wyoming, you might want to catch this: The First Millimeter: Healing the Earth This important documentary is coming soon to a PBS station near you. The film features ranchers and farmers managing holistically, explaining how grazing animals and working with nature can return land to health.

we've been gazing at these posters for over a week now, and we can't get enough. we think you'll love them just as much as we do.  Available on our etsy site now. A series of poster size pen and ink drawings by brooke budner. "use your tools wisely", "spend some time in the kitchen […]

on a farm. bluegrass. yes. Grey Fox Bluegrass Festival July 16-19, 2009 Walsh Farm, Oak Hill, NY get your tickets now!  And check out the line up - http://greyfoxbluegrass.com/gfblog/2009/06/26/grey-fox-2009-main-stage-schedule/

young farmer ninjas have what it takes to survive the global warming blasts. real guts. real courage. real resilient diversified systems! here's the latest from our friend Nic Koontz of Native Hill Farm in Fort Collins, CO Hey Severine, Hoping all is well in your neck of the woods. Just taking a moment as I […]

we've mentioned the greenhorns radio show before, broadcasting weekly on Heritage Radio. It's quite informative and entertaining - interviews with young farmers, events, etc.  We recently heard from another radio-saavy greenhorn out in South Dakota, producing the "Rock Garden Tour" - farming/gardening/rock and roll in collaboration with South Dakota Public Broadcasting.  We love it, and […]

Patti Moreno is known as the Garden Girl.  She's got a pretty rad site, and some great informational videos, including this on, on sustainable urban gardening. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmmBXqHpdV8&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gardengirltv.com%2F&feature=player_embedded] and check out her how-to on drip irrigation here: http://www.dripworksusa.com/video/videoggtab.php

news from natalie & the popsicle boys... Hey y'all, Our 29-day popsicle shop in Battery Park starts today, woot woot! We just found out this was happening earlier in the week so basically, nobody knows about it. But we made a bunch of strawberry-rhubarb, strawberries & cream and sweet rhubarb pops and are going to […]

We just got word from Greenhorn Talia Kahn-Kravis, who's busy spreading the good greenhorns vibes in the mountains of Spain!  Talia worked with us all of last year, maintaining databases and tending the geese and ducks among other valiant efforts for the cause.  Keep up the good work, Talia! i have been in the middle […]

"Compost Only" comes via the Hardwick, VT - based Highfields Institute. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7qNPUYh5Yo&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.highfieldsinstitute.org%2FCompostVideo1.htm&feature=player_embedded] "This video covers the basics of composting in an entertaining and informative way, interspersing nuts-and-bolts lessons of composting with clips of students from Hazen High School kickin' the message home in a hip-hop style that will have you moonwalking all the way to […]

we asked greenhorn Neysa King to tell us a bit about her experience transitioning to the farming life.  here's what she had to say... My fiancée Travis and I had no farming experience when we came to Ryder Farm last month—just an interest in organic food and a desire to make a change in our […]

ivili.org pulls together short films on practical sustainable solutions, such as this one on growing your own: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCPEBM5ol0Q&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ivili.org%2Fvideo%2Fhomegrown-revolution-growing&feature=player_embedded] here is the founder's statement: One day early last year I came across a brilliant, innovative way of heating water for showers in a lodge in South Africa. it was cheap, lo-tech, easily replicable and it worked. […]

State programs out to help young farmers Two beginning-farmer programs are helping a new generation of farmers and ranchers with below-market interest rates, fee reductions and other services by David Lester Yakima Herald-Republic PROSSER, Wash. -- Jon and Amy Martinez packed a lot into 2008 by anyone's standard.